Step Into Nature To Improve Your Focus, Creativity and Happiness

The advice to step into nature to improve your focus, creativity and happiness may not come as a surprise to many. We are all human beings after all, and I’m sure nature did not intend for us to sit in offices in front of a computer, watch TV and play video games for the majority of our lives. Sadly, this appears to be the direction that society is pushing us. I’ve touched on creativity before on other articles on this site, where ideas can come to you at the most obscure of times, such as in the shower, or when you’re on a cycle ride or hanging upside down pretending you’re Batman. I may have made that last one up, but I’m sure there’s some kind of sense to it. This is an excerpt from Lifehacker where Jonah Lehrer of the Wall Street Journal is featured.

According to Jonah Lehrer at the Wall Street Journal, a growing amount of evidence suggests hanging out in nature can increase your creativity, happiness, and focus.

Research from a forthcoming paper by researchers at the University of Kansas suggests that when you wander into untamed landscapes it calms your nerves and restores your brain power. As Lehrer points out this can help you be more creative, happier, and improve your focus. In the University of Kansas study, just three days in nature lead to a 50% increase in performances on creativity tests.

So when you’re next stuck for ideas, and your mind is going off in all sorts of directions, step into nature to improve your focus, creativity and happiness. It makes complete sense to me. It’s easy to get stuck in the 9-5 grind (or 8-6, 7-7 or worse), with an hour commute either side of your working day and just get used to the idea that that is what life is about. I believe every single person has it in them to be creative, as Sir Ken Robinson quite rightly points out. I don’t think we’ll ever find our creative sides by sitting in front of a computer. Do as nature intended and get outdoors!

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